Dakota Fanning & Emma Thompson Sign Up for "Effie"

In the film, Dakota will play Euphemia Gray, who married famed critic John Ruskin. Though Effie was gorgeous, her husband never consummated the marriage over five years because he was disgusted by her body. In the end, Effie falls in love with Ruskin’s protege John Everett Millais.

Meanwhile, Thompson plays the part of Lady Eastlake who takes Effie under her wing and helps her cope with her dysfunctional marriage.

Emma also wrote the script for the film. Producer Don Rosenfeld told press, “It’s Emma Thompson’s first original script after doing several fine adaptations, and it gets to the heart of Victorian England. The script for Effie was always brilliant, but sometimes these things take time.”